Arne Slot gets perfect Liverpool 'leader' hint amid Virgil van Dijk 'secret transfer' theory

Arne Slot gets perfect Liverpool 'leader' hint amid Virgil van Dijk 'secret transfer' theory

Liverpool could lose three leaders in the dressing room at the end of the season, so Arne Slot may be forced to appoint a new captain

Liverpool head coach Arne Slot talking with Reds captain Virgil van Dijk (Image: Andrew Powell/Liverpool FC via Getty Images )

Nigel de Jong has named Cody Gakpo as one of the Netherlands' 'leaders'. The Liverpool forward helped his country secure four-points in the Nations League during the international break, climbing to second in Group 3A.

Gakpo doubled the Netherlands' lead over Hungary on Saturday night from 12-yards. The Dutchman, controversially, assumed responsibility for the penalty despite Wout Weghorst firing his side ahead from a spot-kick earlier in the game.

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Speaking to reporters after the game, Ronald Koeman later condemned Gakpo's actions and insisted 'won’t happen again'. The Reds ace was then dropped to the bench in the Netherlands' draw to Bosnia and Herzegovina.

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Despite rubbing Koeman the wrong way, De Jong later hailed Gakpo – and Denzel Dumfries – for his leadership on his Instagram story. Captioning a picture of himself standing with the duo, the Dutch FA's technical director wrote: "2 leaders by example."

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De Jong also posted the picture to his Instagram feed, writing: "End of the November window and international football of 2024. Even though we qualified for the last 8 in the Nations League, there is plenty of room for improvement. Enough time to reflect now and make the right moves going forward. Trust the process."

Nigel de Jong hails Cody Gakpo as a leader for the Netherlands (Image: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/nigeldejong/ )

If Virgil van Dijk, Trent Alexander-Arnold and Mohamed Salah are to leave Liverpool when their contracts expire at the end of the season, Arne Slot will be forced to appoint a new captain. The Reds boss will look to entrust a 'leader' – like Gakpo, according to De Jong – with the armband.

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Nevertheless, with Liverpool in a race against time to tie the trio down to new contracts, Paul Merson has backed one of them to leave - with a theory that secret talks may be underway soon. In a column for SportsKeeda, the Arsenal legend said: "The contract situation at Liverpool is getting a bit nervy, isn't it?

"I got this feeling that one of Trent Alexander-Arnold, Virgil van Dijk or Mohamed Salah will sign a pre-contract agreement with another club in January. We might not see it in public, but they might just do it.

"If you've got just six months left on your contract and you get injured, what happens then? Better safe than sorry. I'm not sure if Van Dijk will do it, but one of the other two might. I think it could be Alexander-Arnold, especially with talk about Real Madrid as well."

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